"Ivan and Phoebe" is a novel by Oksana Lutsishina, which takes place in the last years of Soviet power and in the first years of Ukrainian Independence. After studying in Lviv and participating in the Granite Revolution, Ivan returns to his native Uzhgorod, where he marries the poet Maria, who calls herself Phoebe. Lviv and Kiev are cities with a turbulent political life, but Uzhgorod is distinguished by a somewhat grotesque atmosphere of patriarchal family structure and early capitalism in Ukrainian. Here it is easy to do without special effects from horror or thriller: the very reality of everyday life suggests moves that can compete with the creations of King or Kusturica in terms of tension.